


Guinea Pigs

by s0ft1e



Category: BLACKPINK (Band)
Genre: F/F, Thriller
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-04
Updated: 2017-12-13
Packaged: 2019-02-10 12:33:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,107
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12912018
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/s0ft1e/pseuds/s0ft1e
Summary: Jisoo’s always been fearless. Ghosts? Lame. Heights? Trivial. An overnight stay in an abandoned, supposedly haunted lodge? Piece of cake, surely. What could possibly go wrong, when she and her 3 best friends take the plunge? Can they survive the (literal and figurative) intense tests of character?





	1. Chapter 1

JISOO’S POV:

Pacing restlessly beside the fireplace, I dialled Chaeyoung’s number for the umpteenth time, getting increasingly worried with every second I continued to hear the aggravating dial tone. _What in the world was going on?_ Only about an hour ago, the four of us had been seated in a circle in this very room, huddled over the Blue Marble board, chatting and gossiping away in high spirits like there was no tomorrow.

It all started with Lisa heading to the restroom. And regardless of how engrossed we were in the game, 25 minutes seemed an awfully long time for Lisa to spend in the toilet, even if she was taking an exceptionally large dump.

“Maybe it was all the chicken.” Chaeyoung had shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly. It did sound plausible, given that Lisa had consumed more fried chicken than I did for lunch, which was no mean feat.

“Maybe she's touching herself.” Jennie had raised an eyebrow suggestively, but it didn't really make sense, for we all knew too well that Jennie and Lisa would be up all night long, arms and legs intertwined, and Chaeyoung and I could only hope they weren't unbearably loud.

Jennie had offered to check up on Lisa, cheekily adding, “I might take a while.” And indeed she did. After another 15 minutes, there was absolutely no sign of Jennie or Lisa. The only conclusion Chaeyoung and I could draw was that they were in the midst of yet another passionate love-making session, but despite searching every nook and cranny of the increasingly eerie lodge in an attempt to spoil their fun, we drew a blank.

Chaeyoung had volunteered to check outside the lodge, assuring me that she'd be back in a matter of minutes. She didn't keep her word. And that left me all alone, trying desperately to contact any of my best friends, but my efforts were futile. I could only hope that this was part of an elaborate prank they had decided to pull on me, because the other possibility...was far more unsettling.

“ _We're going to the lodge?” Chaeyoung looked absolutely horrified._

_“Isn't it supposed to be haunted? I'd rather not.” I had assumed Lisa was joking as usual, but her face showed absolutely no traces of a smile._

_“Don't you remember that article I showed you a couple of weeks ago? 9 people went to stay in the lodge. 9 people never returned.” Jennie looked at me as if I was crazy._

_“You girls really think the lodge is haunted by some old fogy of a scientist?” I burst out into hearty laughter. “Trust me, that's nothing but a myth. In fact, my cousin went to the lodge with his friends one week ago. It's completely safe.” Now that I thought about it though, I hadn't heard from my cousin since...I shrugged that thought from my mind. I must have been persuasive, the girls eventually agreed to head to the lodge over the Chuseok holidays, albeit somewhat reluctantly._

As skeptical as I had been about the rumours of the supposed ghost of a brilliant scientist eliminating anyone who dared trespass into what was once his haven of scientific experimentation and discovery, it now seemed disconcertingly plausible, why else would my friends disappear without a trace? Waves of regret and guilt coursed through my body as terrifying implications of my happy-go-lucky decision flooded my mind. _I was the oldest, I was responsible for them coming here, I put them in danger…_

With no sign of Chaeyoung picking up anytime soon, I gave up and tossed my phone onto the couch in frustration. Out of the blue, I caught a fleeting glimpse of sudden movement in the shadows of the floor above. _There they are!_ With my hope renewed, I called out loudly. “Lisa, I’ve seen you! Or is it Jennie? You can forget about scaring me, girls, you’re not gonna get me.”

“Oh, they’re most certainly not going to scare you, because I’ve already scared the living daylights out of them.” The low, gruff voice seemed to come from my left. Turning instinctively to look, what I saw caused a sharp pang of fear to shoot through my body. I was staring down the barrel of a gun. “You’re next.”

“When faced with situations which cause fear, anxiety or immense stress, the “fight-or-flight” reaction comes into effect in animals.” Out of nowhere, the words of my Biology teacher resonated within my panicked mind. _Not true_. I was rooted to the spot, paralysed with fear, practically accepting of my gruesome fate. There was a click, softer than I had imagined. There was a searing pain surging through my neck, rapidly spreading throughout my body. _So this is what death feels like..._

As I began to lose consciousness, the final images of a vivid sequence of memories were that of my best friends. _I’m sorry…_

 

  
The scientist smirked as he admired the four attractive girls lying together in a heap on the ground of his highly futuristic lab. From the outside, it looked just like any other average barn. Only he knew that the interior consisted of high-end radar tracking systems, an astounding array of weaponry and of course, the system of squares. It was the creation he was proudest of, and he had been making incredible breakthroughs in the study of human behaviour under stress.

Any sexually active man or woman would have the time of their lives with these girls, he decided. _But I am no ordinary man...I serve a higher purpose. I am a man of science, women can only dream of being as fulfilling as new breakthroughs…_ He smiled with satisfaction. _They are no sexual objects, they are merely another batch of guinea pigs, sacrifices made for the greater good…_

He still didn’t understand why everyone who visited this lodge let their guard down completely. To entice thrill-seeking test subjects into making appearances, he had worked hard to build a reputation for the lodge, and he often wondered if his attempts to promote the lodge as a horrifying location to visit were far too feeble. Either way, it didn’t matter. In fact, it made his life far easier. He wasn’t a good shot. However, he always had ample time to set the aim of his tranquilizer gun on unsuspecting stationary targets, making it practically impossible to miss.

No one had ever escaped from the squares. He didn’t allow it. Most test subjects had perished by the second square of a total of four. He had never felt any remorse, though. The removal of complete strangers were the least of his concerns compared to the breakthroughs he was making. _Four more to bite the dust_...he chuckled to himself once again.

 

JISOO’S POV:

_Am I in heaven?_ I had come across many varied presumptions of what the afterlife entailed, but as my eyes fluttered open slowly, I most certainly did not expect pitch-black darkness. My head felt heavy, my right arm full of pins and needles, and my neck... _hadn’t I been shot?_ My heart was still beating regularly in my chest, a sharp pain shot through my arm as I pinched it. _I’m alive._ I wasn’t sure how, but I wasn’t complaining.

My thoughts immediately shifted to that of my friends. Were they even alive? Where were they? In fact, where was I? As my vision gradually adjusted to the expanse of darkness I lay in, I was able to make out towering walls on either side of myself. _I’m in a cave of sorts._

I struggled to get myself upright, my legs were numb, and I had to stumble around clumsily, using the rough walls for support, before I could feel blood flowing through my legs again. Now what? I weighed up my options despondently. One, I could stay where I was and hope help would arrive. Two, I could head in either direction and hope to find the exit. Either way, my odds of surviving weren’t great.

As it turned out, I didn’t have to contemplate my decision for much longer, practically jumping out of my skin as a familiar deep voice broke the absolute silence abruptly.

“Greetings, my four lovely ladies, it's a pleasure to have you here this evening.” The voice boomed from somewhere to my right. Goosebumps arose on my arms and legs as uneasiness took over yet again. It seemed all four of us were alive, but if this psycho hadn’t intended to kill us, what was he planning to do with us? Surely, nothing good would come out of this. As much as his voice gave me the creeps, I realised he was helping me find the way out, regardless of his intentions. _Follow the voice..._

“I am Yang Hyunsuk, I assume you’ve heard of me.” I gasped in horror. _He was dead!_ I had never been one to pay much attention to the supernatural, but the way this night had gone, I wasn’t sure what to believe anymore.

A few years back, Yang Hyunsuk was Korea’s brightest mind. His outstanding breakthroughs in the medical field had garnered him much acclaim, but his methods were highly controversial. Animals and dying humans were his avenues of testing for the effectiveness of his newly concocted drugs, and it had been revealed by an investigative journalist that, rather appallingly, over fifty grown animals and a dozen frail, old individuals had perished during his quest for perfection in finding a cure for cancer.

“Can’t you see that this is for the greater good of mankind? These old folks, they’re gonna be gone in a couple years, I’m giving them the opportunity to look back at their lives and know that they left the world in a better state compared to when they entered it.” Alas, despite his efforts to justify his wrongdoings, the police were having none of it, and he was handed a lengthy jail sentence. He never stepped foot into prison, though, the police revealed that the brilliant scientist had decided to take his own life in his very own home one day before his term was due to begin. _Or had he?_ I recalled joking to my parents that the police statement was so vague that the scientist was probably still on the run.

“You girls will have the privilege of assisting me in this new aspect of human behaviour I’m studying currently. I believe you’ll be more than familiar with it, human behaviour under stress.” If this man was indeed the scientist, having heard of his heartless methods of experimentation, I had a feeling that we had been “recruited” to play the glorious, indispensable roles all his experiments required, none other than guinea pigs.

“We’ll be playing a little game here. As I speak, Kim Jisoo is making her way into Square One. She holds the key to open the gate leading to Square Two, although I doubt she realises it at this point. Park Chaeyoung, who is currently in Square One, holds the key to open the gate leading to Square Three, and so on so forth. Sounds simple, doesn’t it? All of you girls reunite, proceed through Square Four, and you win the game. It really isn’t so basic, though, I’m sure you’ll see what I mean, you might face pretty high levels of stress. Oh, and of course, as long as one square isn’t cleared, no one’s leaving the game alive. No pressure then, Jisoo. And...I see you’ve almost reached, shall we let the games begin?”

It took a moment for me to comprehend the full extent to which my role was unthinkably vital. The fates of my best friends lay in my hands. Admittedly, I was scared. But at the same time, my thoughts seemed more settled. _Alright Jisoo, buckle down, overcome whatever he throws at you, do it for the girls. You got them into hot soup, do whatever it takes to get them out fast, even if it means getting scalded to the point of no return…_

As I continued my brisk walk, I quite literally saw light at the end of the tunnel. More and more light came pouring into the cave as I made my way towards the opening. A sign placed beside the opening read “Square One: Logic”, with a chest placed beneath it. _Should I open this?_ I had always had faith in my female instincts, and my gut was telling me it wasn’t a trap. Indeed, after apprehensively opening the chest, I was pleasantly surprised to see a pistol, with the words “USE WISELY” scrawled messily on a Post-it next to the gun. I supposed Yang Hyunsuk planned to give us a fighting chance at the very least...

Slipping the pistol into the pocket of my jeans, I stepped out into the open. As I squinted while my eyes adjusted to the light from the evening sun’s rays, all I could make out in front of me was a vast expanse of dense foliage, trees that towered majestically overhead and thick bushes full of fruits and berries. I closed my eyes and breathed in the fresh air momentarily. I loved nature. _Ok, Jisoo, this is perfect. You’re in your element now, make it count._

 


	2. Square One

JISOO’S POV

It was only when I decided to get on my way that I realised I had no idea where I should be going. Scanning the horizon for any form of landmarks or structures, all I could see were trees, trees and more trees. _Well, if logic had to come into the picture..._ the psycho had called this Square One, and squares only had four sides. If I managed to find the border of the square, and followed it, I should be able to find an exit at one of the four corners.

Confident that my reasoning was sound, I decided to follow my intuition yet again and headed east. As I trekked along the uneven ground, my senses were on high alert, for I knew it wouldn't be long before I found myself in a sticky situation. _Stress by logic?_ I mused over the strange combination of factors in play. _Hopefully it isn't anything to do with logic puzzles or brainteasers..._ I wasn't confident if my brain had to come into the picture.

Despite making sure to constantly check on my surroundings, I saw nothing but flora and fauna around me. Despite making sure to take note of every single sound that could spell danger, all I could hear were crickets chirping and frequent shrill whistles, which I could only assume were made by birds. It was a pity, had I not been stuck in a life-and-death situation, I would have loved hiking in forests like these...my train of thought caused me to lose some focus.

“Kim Jisoo!” A cheery voice I knew all too well rang out somewhere to my left, catching me completely off guard. My favourite voice in the entire world, belonging to my favourite person in the entire world. My lips curved upwards involuntarily as I whirled around to see Chaeyoung running towards me excitedly. We threw our arms around each other tightly, and I let myself melt into her embrace, feeling a massive weight being lifted off my shoulders.

“Kim Jisoo, I missed you…” Chaeyoung murmured into my ear. I couldn't remember Chaeyoung ever addressing me without honorifics, but I assumed it was more down to trauma and relief than anything else.

“I'm so glad you're safe, I was a fool, I put everyone in danger, and I simply have to get all of you girls out of this mess.” There were so many things I wanted to tell Chaeyoung at that instant that I ended up blabbering incoherently.

Chaeyoung nodded thoughtfully. “It's true, it's all your fault we're in such dire straits now.” It was the truth, but I winced nevertheless. Chaeyoung was usually so passive, so forgiving that she almost never cast blame on anyone. _She must have been really angry…_

I hung my head both apologetically and out of shame. “I'm really sorry, Chaeyoung-ah.”

She shook her head while still wearing a poker face. “Have you encountered.... _anything_ yet?”

“No, but don't worry, I have this baby if we meet anything.” I waved the pistol proudly.

Her face lit up immediately. “Oh, that's fantastic! Can I keep it?”

I found the request slightly odd. In fact, Chaeyoung had been behaving rather strangely the entire time, I wasn't sure if the psycho had pulled some strings, or she was really as shaken as she appeared to be. “I think it'd be better if I kept it, you know, all the Overwatch? I know my way around a gun.”

“But I want the gun.” Chaeyoung retorted with an edge in her voice. Now my Spidey senses were tingling. _Keep an eye on her, she’s behaving weirdly._

“No, I got you into these dire straits, didn’t I? I’ll be the one to protect you now.” Chaeyoung looked like she was about to protest, but seemed to think better of it, and eventually conceded. Still, I couldn’t help but feel that in some way, this wasn’t the Chaeyoung I knew.

Things got a bit more normal, as we continued towards the border of the square while discussing how we would find our way out of this demented game. I had asked Chaeyoung if there was anything about me that seemed different from when the day had just begun, in the hope of discovering the key, but after she had earnestly given me a once-over and genuinely looked uncertain, she shook her head. _Then how are we going to get out?_ I dared not voice out my thoughts though, for fear of Chaeyoung panicking even more.

“Oh, look, Chaeyoung-ah, it’s your favourite.” The adorable rabbit hopped towards us and looked at us innocently with its big eyes. I smiled to myself as I recalled Chaeyoung fawning over the rabbits in those pet cafes we visited regularly. And I had been expecting more of the same, but I couldn’t have been more wrong.

“Aha, perfect!” Chaeyoung made her way to the rabbit slowly, which was gazing at her in wonder. When she got into close proximity with the rabbit, she raised the axe she had kept with her (having said it might be of good use when we came across it earlier) high above her head, leaving me wondering what she was doing.

Imagine my horror when Chaeyoung drove the axe forcefully downwards onto the poor rabbit, blood spurted uncontrollably from the rabbit’s deformed body and she spun around with an unsettlingly cheerful expression on her face. “Kim Jisoo, don’t you love eating? I just got us some dinner.”

This wasn’t Chaeyoung, I was sure of it now. Either it was an impostor, or she had gone completely mad. The Chaeyoung I knew wouldn’t hurt a fly, and her love for animals was boundless. This despicable act of outright cruelty was far, far beyond her limits. As Chaeyoung started walking towards me, I instinctively backed away.

“Who are you?”

“I’m Park Chaeyoung, your friend. You forgot, Kim Jisoo?” Chaeyoung began picking up her pace, and I almost tripped over my own feet trying to maintain the distance between us.

“You are not Chaeyoung, I’m sure of it. You’re an impostor.” I tried my best to maintain my composure, but I was beginning to understand what Yang Hyunsuk had mentioned about high stress levels.

“Am I? You don’t trust me, Kim Jisoo? Shall I invite others to prove my point?” Chaeyoung had practically broken into a jog at this point, and she whistled loudly. I was stunned... _that’s the bird whistle I heard earlier?_ The next couple of seconds were probably the most terrifying of my entire life, Chaeyoung began... _morphing_. Gone were her facial features and her legs. Her body followed in disappearing. Wings began to take shape. Claws and a beak soon followed, and I found myself staring right into the eyes of what I could only describe as a demented chickadee. Its claws and beak were razor-sharp, and even more horrifyingly, each of its wings had a pistol attached to it. This time, the fight-or-flight reaction most certainly kicked into action.

Perhaps, human behaviour under stress was really different. Some wilted under the immense pressure, some stood up tall in the face of the challenges and fought valiantly. The fact that I seemed to fall into the latter category was probably the only thing keeping me alive, I couldn't recall an instant where my legs could carry me as fast as they had been for the past minute. As I ducked and weaved through the countless trees, shrubs and bushes, bullets whizzed past my body _wayyy_ too close for comfort. The bird was in hot pursuit, and firing away relentlessly, I could only thank my lucky stars it hadn’t been programmed to be a sharpshooter.

My legs ached, my breaths became increasingly laboured, and I could tell that the only thing keeping me going was the pure adrenaline that, well, happened to mass produce when one was running away from certain death. _I’ll be running on empty soon…_ I wished I hadn’t shunned my parents’ attempts to encourage increased exercise in my daily routine.

My heart sank as another robotic bird appeared in front of me, and even more so when upon changing direction, I realised they had surrounded me and were pincering me in. _Well, Jisoo, no more flight for you. You gotta take the fight._

I had never actually fired a gun before, but being an avid player of first-person shooter games, I would say my aim wasn’t too shabby. The birds began circling around me, and started whistling again, and I wondered if they were calling for even more reinforcements or merely communicating amongst each other. Either way, it didn’t matter.

I whipped out the pistol from my pocket, took aim, and fired. The recoil of the gun caused me to stumble backwards, but I looked on in awe as the bird I had shot let out yet another deafening whistle, before falling to the ground with smoke emanating from its body. _What a shot._ My pride was short-lived, however, the other birds seemed outraged at the loss of their fellow comrade, and following a cacophany of whistles, they dived towards me as a pack.

I acted on pure instinct. 1 vs 5 situation? Nothing new to me. Just as I always did in the games, I kept my composure and focused on isolating each opponent to an individual duel. The first was downed almost immediately, as I fired several shots into the onrushing flock and managed to connect. A hail of bullets sailed towards me, but I was able to find cover behind a large oak tree just in the nick of time.

What ensued was a routine so perilous I wouldn’t have wished it upon my worst enemy. Eliminate one. Scramble for cover. Eliminate one. Scramble for cover. Thankfully, Lady Luck seemed to be on my side, for I remained relatively unscathed even after eliminating 4 robots, apart from a bullet that literally grazed the edge of my ear, but did barely any harm. I was gaining in confidence, when both elements of luck and skill came together, how could I be stopped? The remaining robot looked apprehensive, even, no longer charging blindly towards me. I squinted, took aim, and fired. It dodged. That only made me more confident, though, from being the hunted to being the hunter…

One more shot was all that was necessary to blast the demented bird’s head off its body, and when all the adrenaline subsided, and the predicament I was stuck in began to sink in, I simply slumped to the ground in exhaustion. _Was this what he meant by logic? Maintaining logical reasoning even in the face of crisis?_ In a twisted, sadistic way, I realised it did make sense. Had I not come to the conclusion that “Chaeyoung” wasn't simply shaken but different, I shuddered imagining what the apparition would have done to me. _I may have ended up sliced and diced just like the rabbit…_

I had lost any sense I had of my bearings at this point, what with running around like a headless chicken in order to remain alive and kicking. By some massive stroke of fortune, though, I found the border, while knowing absolutely nothing about it. While thinking through changes that had to be made to my plans, I had kicked a small pebble to my right out of frustration. As my eyes followed the trajectory of the pebble’s flight, the pebble seemed to deflect mid-air and land a few centimetres from where it had stopped, as if there were some invisible wall in the way. And indeed there was. The forest continued beyond the border, yet I couldn’t pass through.

Evidently, the secrets of this square lay in the numerous apparitions roaming the forest. The harrowing experience from before ensured I didn’t let my guard down and remained more cautious. The countless remaining “Chaeyoung”s were surprisingly easy to handle, all I had to do was ask what my dog’s name was, for I knew it simply wasn’t possible that Chaeyoung would forget Dalgom. And once the robots began spinning up ridiculous excuses, I fired bullets into their skulls without hesitation, upon which the visions of Chaeyoung were replaced by fallen birds whistling mournfully before perishing. It seemed that once you understood how the robots were programmed, it was easy to expose their weaknesses. Although, I supposed few would be able to survive the first attack…

The search was painful. I couldn’t find the exit, I couldn’t find Chaeyoung, and these robots were getting on my nerves. As I trudged along the path wearily, amongst the sea of green, a noticeable mass of brown lay straight ahead. Could it be? I picked up speed and craned my neck, and the relief that coursed through my entire body was probably palpable as I found myself staring into an opening which looked very much like the one I had emerged from earlier.

_One down. One left to find._ I sighed despondently, this square was huge, attempting to find Chaeyoung would be akin to looking for a needle in a haystack. _It never rains but it pours, doesn’t it_...I gazed into the horizon, realising that if I ventured into the seemingly endless expanse of nature yet again, there was no way I was making my way back easily.

With that thought in mind, more out of hope than any concrete belief, I decided to scout the cave first. This cave wasn’t completely dark, instead it was illuminated by a dim red light that only contributed to creating an eerie atmosphere. I knew that in many caves around the world, hieroglyphs and ancient illustrations were sketched on the walls, and I could only assume the countless scientific and mathematical equations scrawled messily on these cave walls were feeble attempts by Yang Hyunsuk to heighten the realism of the cave. I soldiered along the seemingly never-ending winding path, clinging to the tiny vestiges of hope that continued fading away with every step I took without spotting any signs of life.

“ _Help me! Save me, someone, anyone!”_ My ears perked up. _Chaeyoung_. Knowing full well it was most probably yet another apparition, I felt more encouraged nonetheless, breaking into a jog as I drew nearer to the source of the faint, desperate cries. Upon rounding the next corner, I froze and came to a stop momentarily. _What had he done?_ Chaeyoung lay slumped against a iron gate that looked completely impenetrable, bound with a ridiculous amount of rope that looked to be suffocating her. “Jisoo unnie…please.”

“Chaeyoung-ah, I’m here, don’t worry, I’ll get you out of this.” I had attempted to sound assuring, but I doubted I had been successful. Not that it made much of a difference. Chaeyoung didn’t budge an inch, didn’t respond, and as I approached her hurriedly, I realised she didn’t even have her eyes open. “Go away, you creep!” _She’s having a nightmare_. I was certainly no stranger to Chaeyoung’s peculiar sleeping habit—sleeptalking, and I marveled at how she had even had the peace of mind to fall asleep. _I guess it wasn’t as if she could have done anything else…_

My instinct told me this was 100% Chaeyoung, but what with all the morphing birds, I simply had to be absolutely sure. She stirred after my gentle tapping on her shoulder, and she seemed to take a while to regain her bearings. However, the instant our eyes met, her eyes widened drastically and her expression screamed genuine joy. “Unnie, you’re safe!”

“Chaeyoung-ah, what’s the name of my dog?”

She frowned and pouted cutely. “Unnie, are you trying to test my memory? I don’t think I got it that bad, my brain is working fine.”

“Just answer the question.” I pressed rather reluctantly.

“Dalgomie? I’m fine, unnie, relax.” Chaeyoung giggled in spite of the appalling state she was in. I heaved a sigh of relief and buried my face in my hands. _She called me unnie. She’s using honorifics. She knows Dalgom. It’s her._

“Let’s get you out of here.” As I began painstakingly untying the secure bonds holding Chaeyoung in place, I expressed my sincere apologies for the second time tonight. And of course, unlike the other time, Chaeyoung refused to put any blame on me, while seeming impressively optimistic. The level of optimism clearly declined severely as I recounted my near-death experiences at the hands of astonishingly advanced robotic birds who were able to morph into her.

The even bigger question was, how were we to get through to Square 2? First things first, as soon as I freed Chaeyoung from the rope, she enveloped me in a bone-crushing hug, which I reciprocated all too gladly.

“Oh, unnie, you were asking me if anything seemed different on your face?”

“Mmhmm?”

“Um, I didn’t see them earlier, but your earrings.”

“My earrings?” I put my hand to my ear, and sure enough, my favourite pair of earrings, a birthday present from Chaeyoung, had been replaced.

“What is it?” The “earrings” seemed to be shaped like a thin jar of sorts.

“I think they’re...whistles.” _Whistles_? I broke our embrace abruptly and activated the electrical lock system located next to the imposing iron gate.

**What is my favourite sound?**

**Answer:**

_The whistles of the demented chickadees..._ it dawned upon me in a flash. I let out a low whistle myself. A simple hug had solved the riddle instantaneously, Lady Luck had most certainly shown her hand again.

After taking a deep breath, I keyed in the only answer that would make sense.

**What is my favourite sound?**

**Answer: Whistle**

Upon pressing the ‘Enter’ button, I stepped back with bated breath. _Click_. The gate swung open. 

 


	3. Square Two

ROSÉ’S POV:

 

_I’ve stepped through the gates of hell._ Jisoo unnie’s jaw was slack and she gasped audibly, whereas I was simply at a loss for words. _This only happens in the movies!_ The sight before my eyes was so spectacularly, implausibly terrifying that I wondered if I was still in the thick of my nightmare. The path before us branched into two separate directions, but it seemed to me that no matter which way we went, the endgame was death.

 

Towering above us on our right was what looked like a set-up for a punishment from the depths of the netherworld. A blazing inferno raged angrily below the only means to cross the sea of fire, a rickety, dilapidated wooden bridge with footholds so far apart I wondered if my legs were even long enough to make the distance between them. _Talk about the ultimate high elements challenge._..no safety harnesses, no helmets, no instructors, just an excruciating balancing exercise to avoid certain death.

 

The destination of the path to our left was much less eye-catching, but no less deadly. I felt my stomach drop as a gargantuan whirlpool swirled and churned powerfully in an equally large body of water, looking more than ready to toss and turn us in spirals as if we were merely ragdolls, until we had been sucked lifeless to unthinkable depths below the surface.

 

_Fire or water. Burning or drowning. Life or death_. I exchanged glances with Jisoo unnie, and she looked every bit as helpless as I felt. “He’s...sick.” Jisoo unnie spluttered, looking completely flabbergasted.

 

Jisoo unnie’s ordeals with shapeshifting robotic birds seemed like strolls in the park compared to what we had to overcome here. A series of words had been carved into the concrete floor, and it read “Square Two: Courage”. _Well, no amount of courage will save us from those…_

 

“Unnie, are you sure there’s nothing different about me?” Jisoo unnie had studied me briefly earlier in the hope of finding some form of key, but had discovered nothing different, apart from the array of red marks on my skin created by the ropes.

 

“Well, at least not on your face or legs.”

 

“Um…” I hesitated momentarily. “Could you help me check…um...underneath these?” I gestured to my clothes.

 

Jisoo unnie looked absolutely horrified at the suggestion. I was slightly taken aback and my face flushed instantly. “Never mind unnie, I’ll do it myself…”

 

“No, no, seeing you naked isn’t exactly anything new to me, you of all people should know that,” My face had to be a deep shade of crimson red at this point, but Jisoo unnie looked unfazed. “I was just thinking that he could have...touched you.” Her hands curled up into fists at her sides.

 

I was beginning to regret my decision, for this wasn’t exactly a situation I wanted to be stripping in. “How should we do this…” I murmured more to myself than to Jisoo unnie, but she had evidently heard me.

 

“Don’t strip, the creep’s watching for sure.”

 

“Then…”

 

“I’ll go under.” Before I could comprehend the meaning of her words, she lifted the hem of my shirt upwards and slotted her head into the space created. Being completely caught off guard, my heart rate skyrocketed as I felt Jisoo unnie’s hot breath against my stomach. _Calm down, Rosie, breathe, this is like one of those medical check-ups, ok? No biggie_.

 

Just as I thought my heart rate had stabilised, I realised Jisoo unnie was fumbling with the clasp of my bra, and my mind went straight to the gutter, my heart rate increased tenfold and my state of arousal was inexplicably high. Taking up such an erotic position was a bad idea…I inhaled sharply as I felt her delicate hands on my assets, and a strangled moan came next as Jisoo unnie squeezed them without warning.

 

In a flash, all my clothing were back in order, and Jisoo unnie was smirking at me while shaking her head. “You enjoyed that way too much, Chaeyoung-ah.”

 

“Guilty as charged, but the squeeze really wasn’t necessary.”

 

“Let’s call it stress relief, shall we? Before we set foot upon that.” She pointed towards the treacherous-looking bridge.

 

“Wait, was the key actually _there_?”

 

“No, it wasn’t.” Jisoo unnie had yet another satisfied smirk on her face. “I found it when you had your eyes closed, your head was tilted back in ecstasy, and your mouth hung open. It was here.” She pointed to her own pristine, white teeth.

 

“On my teeth?” I asked incredulously. “What does it say?”

 

“Follow the light.”

 

 

  
The searing heat produced by the pit of fire was tremendous, we hadn't even stepped foot on the bridge, and I was beginning to feel like I was being burned alive. It reminded me of a barbeque pit, only that this time we were in the position of the meat slabs. I cast a somewhat longing glance towards the dark, murky waters rotating at unbelievable speeds, wondering if meeting my demise there would be less painful than being incinerated.

 

“How can we cross this? It's basically designed to kill.” Jisoo unnie looked as stumped as I was. The bridge looked even more fragile and unstable up close, the worn-out ropes holding the wood together hardly inspiring much confidence.

 

If there was anything going for us, though, it was that the footholds weren't as far apart as they had seemed. Jisoo unnie might have difficulties making the distance, but thanks to my long legs, I didn't think I would face much issues.

 

“Unnie, we can do this. We have to do this. For Jennie unnie and Lisa. We'll overcome all these obstacles together.” I tried to sound confident, but my voice shook audibly. Of course Jisoo unnie, the person who knew me best in the world, would notice. She wrapped me in a comforting hug, and that was the trigger for all my mixed emotions to rise to the surface. It gave me the burning desire to kiss Jisoo unnie. And so I did. Our lips locked in a passionate, intense kiss, every bit as fiery as the inferno raging below, as we put all our worries, despair, hope, anger and love amongst countless other emotions into the kiss. It was magical. It gave me renewed energy, desire, and strength. It instilled confidence in me that our love would prevail.

 

After we parted lips unwillingly, both gasping for air after the mind-blowing exchange, I felt unstoppable. I felt like I was on top of the world. “Unnie, I'll go first, my legs make it easier for me.”

 

Without hesitating, I took the first step onto a rotting wooden plank. The bridge swerved dangerously, and Jisoo unnie cried out in alarm, but I knew I had my balance under control. I would have to thank Jennie unnie later for introducing us all to flying yoga, my sense of balance would have gone nowhere had she not constantly bugged us to perform it, almost to the point of obsession.

 

_Slow and steady wins the race_...I continued advancing tentatively, taking extensive care to ensure my balance was maintained. With each step I took, I had to reach backwards to assist Jisoo unnie, who was obviously having trouble straining her limbs to get from one plank to the other. As precarious as our joint manoeuvres were, every time Jisoo unnie took my hand with conviction, my heart swelled, and my chest filled with a comforting warmth. Pride and encouragement surged through my body as I realised the sheer strength of our mutual trust had allowed us to trust each other with our lives.

 

Maintaining steely focus, we had slowly but surely passed the halfway mark. At this point, what with the intense heat being generated below us, I was completely drenched in sweat, to the point where I wasn’t sure if my palms were clammy due to fear or the unbearable temperatures. Jisoo unnie’s white shirt was soaked in perspiration such that it was essentially transparent, sticking tightly to the body I knew all too well, and the sight of her black bra and exposed skin served as an unwelcome distraction. Thankfully, performing the equivalent of a stunt performed by a tightrope walker wasn’t something one could forget about easily, and the rapid palpitations in my chest reminded me to focus on the challenge ahead.

 

The end was in sight. We had somehow contrived to defy all odds, two ordinary females on the brink of overcoming the outrageously sadistic creation of a mad genius. _Only about 20 metres more_ …I willed myself to keep pushing. However, there was a pressing problem that lay ahead. A problem that threatened to undo all our valiant efforts. I wasn’t sure if it was intentional (it wouldn’t surprise me if it was), but the distance between each of the planks seemed to gradually increase the further we progressed. It had gotten to the point where Jisoo unnie had to virtually perform a split to cover the distance.

 

“Chaeyoung-ah, I don’t think I can make the distance anymore.” Jisoo unnie looked at me with a sombre expression. “You should go ahead without me, I’ve been a burden the entire trip. My work here is done, you have to rescue Jennie and Lisa.”

 

“Unnie, what are you saying? I’m not abandoning you here, if that’s what you’re requesting. Remember our promise? Together forever, in life and death. We’ll survive together, or we’ll die together. The choice is yours.”

 

Perhaps the gods had heard me from above, and had decided not to give us an option after all. Jisoo unnie and I had one foot each placed on a rotting plank with a conspicuously large crackline in the middle. All of a sudden, it snapped. Genuine terror shot through my veins, and I let out a blood-curdling scream. _This is it._ As I dangled from the worn-out rope unsteadily by my arms, I cast a fleeting glance towards the pit of fire below and I was overcome by a sudden wave of nausea. It was very unlikely that we’d even survive the drop, and even if by some miracle we did, there was no escaping the unrelenting flames.

 

“CHAEYOUNG-AH!” Jisoo unnie was yelling urgently somewhere behind me. “Don’t look down! Remember the hours we spent at the monkey bars? This is nothing compared to what we did!” I realised she was right, perhaps divine intervention had tried to guide us along the right path after all.

 

Jisoo unnie and I had a strange shared addiction in high school—playing on the monkey bars. Every day during recess, or even after school, we would be perched in an unorthodox position, be it hanging upside down with only our arms for support or being in the midst of an intense battle to see who could dangle by their legs for the longest time. For that very reason, Jennie unnie always used to complain about “two dirty, sweaty, smelly monkeys” crashing her house everyday.

 

In our current states, we were indeed dirty, sweaty, and smelly. I could only hope the ‘monkeys’ part held true as well, as I tightened my grip on the ropes and began alternately thrusting each arm forward, feeling as if I was playing the role of Tarzan in a scene right out of The Jungle Book. Instead of swinging from branch to branch to flee from African tribes, though, I was edging closer and closer to successfully cheating death. After completing my final swing and straining every sinew in my arms to boost myself up to land, I heaved a huge sigh of relief as I helped a panting Jisoo unnie up. Solid ground had never felt as satisfying beneath my feet in my entire life.

 

Jisoo unnie had always been more of a passive lover, usually allowing me to take the initiative when it came to skinship. But, in a rare display of emotion and affection, she wrapped her arms around my neck with such force I almost lost my balance, and she seemed to break down completely, sobbing uncontrollably into my shoulder. Inevitably, I was also immensely drained mentally, but I knew I had to be strong for Jisoo unnie, being unable to imagine what the two traumatic experiences she had persevered through had taken out of her. It broke my heart to see the ball of sunshine I knew who was usually all smiles and laughs, be reduced to an exhausted, bawling mess.

 

As I patted her back comfortingly and whispered consolingly into her ear, my gaze fell onto the path leading away from us, and my heart proceeded to sink to unprecedented depths. “Unnie, chin up.”

 

She looked up at me with red, puffy, tear-streaked eyes and I wished I hadn’t opened my mouth. “It’s not over yet.”

 

 

 

Once again, it was fire and water. But was it burning or drowning? Was it life or death? The two options presented to us this time appeared far milder compared to the absolute madness we had just experienced. Keyword being appeared, for Yang Hyunsuk had proved he was capable of anything.

 

I wasn’t quite sure what to make of the eerily still body of water on our left, it looked just like any ordinary swimming pool and had no fear factor to it whatsoever. And while I didn't doubt that there was more to it than met the eye, it looked far more promising a route than the alternative, a field of lighted, burning coals, from which sparks leapt excitedly, and the brilliant shade of red beneath the sizzling coals practically acted as a warning sign to keep people at bay.

 

‘Follow the light’ or follow common sense and instinct? I was caught in two minds.

 

“Follow the light.” Jisoo unnie murmured, as if she had read my mind. “That has to be a trap.” She gestured towards the water body.

 

“Even so...won't our feet be burnt to crisps if we tread on burning coals?”

 

“Chaeyoung-ah, Chaeyoung-ah, don't you ever listen in History class?” Jisoo shook her head in mock disappointment while questioning in a sing-song voice.

 

“Look who's talking.”

 

“Well, at least I had the presence of mind to recall that firewalking was a ritual performed by Native Americans and is safe so long as you move quickly.”

 

“That's safe?”

 

“Safer than the water, trust me. In fact, let me prove it to you. Never judge a book by its cover.” Jisoo unnie detached the whistle-shaped earrings from her ears before leading me to the edge of the water body. There was a strange smell in the air, like a thunderstorm was to occur imminently, yet there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. Indeed, something wasn’t right.

 

“Good riddance.” Jisoo unnie tossed the earrings into the water with tremendous strength, clearly letting out some frustration in the process. As the earrings hit the water, there was a loud buzz, before a frighteningly large electrical spark skipped across the surface of the water, causing us to stumble backwards both in shock and fear. _He’s ruthless!_ The seemingly harmless swimming pool was in reality one gigantic electric chair.

 

“Right,” I tried not to sound as shaken as I actually was. “Definitely not this way.”

 

 

  
For all that it was a million times better than getting electrocuted into oblivion, scurrying across burning hot coals wasn’t exactly my cup of tea, to say the least. As Jisoo unnie had said, it was harmless, but leave your feet on the coals for more than one second and the scalding pain was more than happy to make an uninvited appearance. One of Jisoo unnie’s many nicknames for me was ‘Clumsy Chaeng’, and it proved to be painfully prophetic. While Jisoo unnie’s nimble feet danced deftly and swiftly across the coals, I was left stumbling and staggering across the irregular path, searing jolts of pain shooting up my legs way more than I would have liked. No complaints, though, this definitely beat crossing the bridge.

 

Following the rare sighting of her vulnerable side earlier, Jisoo unnie seemed to have put the hardships behind her and was back to being the commanding, assertive figure I knew and loved. Throughout the ordeal, she was perpetually looking out for me, leading me to take the less cumbersome paths and constantly providing moral support, leaving me in awe of her strength of character, always placing others’ welfare before her own.

 

Perhaps I was overwhelmed by Jisoo unnie’s selflessness, perhaps I was simply overwhelmed by the near-death experiences we had laboured through, but it was my turn to get emotional once we had scampered past the last of the coals. And just like it ever was, just like how it should always be, Jisoo unnie was the strong individual ready to act as my pillar of support, unlike the unusual role reversal that had taken place earlier. I leaned in towards Jisoo unnie, eager for another passionate kiss, but she merely offered me a quick peck, far from satiating my hunger.

 

“Chaeyoung-ah, calm your hormones, save them for after we get out of this mess. I’m promising you the best night of your life later, but let’s focus on the tasks at hand for now.” She gestured towards the cave looming ahead of us, which I had deduced should act as a transition between each square. I perked up, _talk about added motivation to survive the night..._

 

I was physically knackered, and I couldn’t imagine the fatigue Jisoo unnie was facing, but the thought of rescuing our friends from suffering seemed to re-energise us, and we made our way along the excessively lengthy path briskly. I was fairly certain he hadn’t mentioned who was stranded in Square Two, but as the lyrics of Frozen’s ‘Let It Go” drifted into our ears faintly, I knew it could only be one person.

 

“ _No right, no wrong, no rules for me, I’m free!_ ” Lisa’s voice broke as she attempted to hit the high note, and a string of curses followed, causing Jisoo unnie and me to burst out into peals of laughter. The silhouette of a human form strapped against an iron gate just as I had been earlier gradually entered our field of vision, and the sheer delight written all over Lisa’s face was heart-warming to see. It gave me flashbacks to our first meeting, where she was pinned against the wall by notorious school bullies, and once again we were to step in as the knights in shining armour to save the damsel in distress.

 

“What took you guys so long?” Lisa pouted and scrunched her nose cutely.

 

“We kinda had our hands full, you know, with trying not to die.” Lisa looked shell-shocked as we described the trials and tribulations we had faced while freeing her from her bonds. Patience had never exactly been a virtue of mine, yet the flurry of activity we found ourselves in was rather unbearable. Once Lisa had been freed, Jisoo unnie immediately activated the electronic lock system. _No rest for the wicked I suppose…_

 

**What is my favourite idiom?**

**Answer:**

 

I groaned. What was with this guy and his love for riddles? I didn’t have the time or patience for this. “Is ‘Follow The Light’ an idiom?” I suggested hopefully.

 

Jisoo unnie shook her head while seemingly deep in thought. “Cross that bridge when I come to it?” What with the psycho creating that god-forsaken bridge, it did make sense, so we agreed.

 

**What is my favourite idiom?**

**Answer: Cross that bridge when I come to it**

 

To our horror, the words ‘Invalid Password’ appeared, along with a warning that we had 2 more tries before the system automatically shut down for 3 hours.

 

“It probably has something to do with fire…” Jisoo unnie murmured thoughtfully. “Add fuel to the fire?” We agreed it was worth a shot, but once again, it turned out to be invalid.

 

_Think, Rosie! You’re not wasting any more time here, we have to rescue Jennie unnie!_ I took a deep breath and attempted to gather my thoughts. _Fire. Walking across fire. Walking on burning hot coals without getting burnt._ A memory from when I was in pre-school suddenly flashed through my mind. “Roseanne, if you play with fire, you’ll get burnt. Remember that! Never play with fire.” A stern, bespectacled teacher had confiscated the box of matchsticks I had found at the playground.

 

_Playing with fire?_ Realisation dawned upon me, and I felt like a woman possessed, advancing towards the lock system confidently without consulting Jisoo unnie and Lisa, ignoring their cries of protest and keying in the answer I was certain of.

 

**What is my favourite idiom?**

**Answer: Playing with fire**

 

I pressed the ‘Enter’ button, vaguely aware that my friends were yelling angrily at me, but I merely smiled knowingly. And when we all heard the click, my smile grew even wider.

 

 

  
Note: Hey everyone, hope you liked this chapter! I never knew writing took so much effort, it really isn't easy but I did my best for this chapter and Square 3 will come ASAP as well :)


	4. Square Three

**LISA’S POV:**

Having heard petrifying first-hand recounts of menacing robots, relentless whirlpools and unforgivingly vigorous fires, I had been fearing the worst when I stepped through the enormous iron gate. _It wouldn’t get any easier, would it?_ Instead of being greeted by heart-stopping heights or barrages of bullets, though, the plain, dull-looking room we entered came as a welcome surprise. In fact, the entrance to the cave was barely 20 metres away from us.

I cast a hopeful smile towards my friends, but they merely shook their heads coldly and continued surveying the room warily. “Don’t let your guard down, this is even more dodgy.” Jisoo unnie warned disapprovingly. Point taken. I wasn’t about to doubt someone who appeared like she had nine lives, and incredibly, following the very next step we took, a large block of metal plummeted downwards and blocked off the opening to the cave. _Right, it definitely wasn’t going to be that easy…_

“Very impressive. It seems I underestimated girl power.” The gruff, sinister voice was back again, and just like before, it chilled me to the spine.

“ _Are the bolts dead?” I wondered aloud as I fumbled with the doorknob roughly, impatience and frustration boiling over as the door wouldn’t budge, and I was desperate to get back to the enthralling game._

_“No, but you might be soon.” The evil chuckle that followed the simple yet impactful sentence resulted in a sudden onset of terror in my mind. I whirled around in a flash, but it was too late. A small projectile lodged itself into my neck, and in a matter of seconds everything went black._

“Square One and Two were pretty large, hmm?” The creepy voice brought me back to the present. “Square Three is...slightly different. No more robots, no more fires, you just have to survive for an hour in this unspectacular room, and Square Four beckons. Introducing...Square Three: Adaptability. Your time starts...now.” I rolled my eyes at his flair for the dramatic, but it soon became clear he wasn’t joking around.

The heat struck first. The instant his voice trailed off, it felt as if we had teleported into the Sahara Desert. The room had essentially become a large-scale oven turned on at maximum power, making me feel like I had been set on fire. Surely scorching temperatures would be all we had to contend with? Wrong.

The sandstorm followed. Ridiculously strong gusts of wind billowed from behind us, millions of fine pellets of sand began raining down from the ceiling, and I screamed as numerous minuscule particles converged upon my eyes and attacked them with no holds barred. _I’m blind!_ I wasn’t aware that it would hardly make a difference, for all I would have seen was sand, sand and more sand. What I was aware of, though, was that the gale force of the wind was literally sweeping me off my feet.

In a matter of seconds, I was hovering in mid-air, and as I opened my mouth to scream in terror, I ended up choking on the piping hot sand. I knew the winds were getting stronger, I knew I was beginning to accelerate forward at a worryingly fast pace, but I had no other option but to suffer in silence. And the real suffering came as I crashed hip-first onto the wall on the opposite end with great force. Then, all the action occurring simultaneously screeched to a halt. The sand settled on the floor in mounds, the air was still, and I lay on the ground clutching my hip and writhing in pain. _That’s gonna be one heck of a bruise…_ thankfully I didn’t think anything was broken.

I glanced to my right first, where Jisoo unnie was getting to her feet unsteadily, clutching her glutes while wincing. Even so, I couldn’t help but think that she had gotten lucky, landing on the fleshiest part of the body would go some way to cushioning the staggering impact. However, Jisoo unnie’s expression showed no traces of relief. I only saw fear and worry in her expression. Slightly confused, I followed her line of sight and immediately understood.

_Chaeyoung_...my eyes widened in horror as her lifeless body lay slumped against the wall completely motionless. “Chaeyoung-ah!” Jisoo unnie cried out, her voice a heart-wrenching mix of pain, worry and panic, as she sprinted over to the unconscious girl. I followed in hot pursuit, and my heart rate skyrocketed as I began fearing the worst. A humongous bruise was forming on Chaeyoung’s forehead, making it apparent that she had collided head-first with the wall and been knocked out cold. I held my breath as Jisoo unnie began checking for a pulse frantically, only releasing it after she mumbled “She’s alive.”

We fondled Chaeyoung’s head delicately, shook her gently, Jisoo unnie continually whispered sweet nothings into her ear, but she simply wouldn’t come to. “Has the sandstorm ended?” I couldn't imagine what might happen to Chaeyoung if she suffered even more damage in the sorry state she was in currently.

As if on cue, the winds started howling with renewed vigour once again and the sand began spiralling rapidly mid-air. _Fuck. I jinxed it._ “Lisa, grab Chaeyoung! We’ve gotta stick together, it’s the only way we won’t end up being hurled around to our deaths.” I had to marvel at Jisoo unnie’s clarity of thought and survival instincts, even in the catastrophic situation we found ourselves in. She had been the first pawn deployed, almost acting as a sacrifice in the psycho’s demented game of chess, but she had resiliently avoided every trap laid out and it seemed nothing would break the rock she had proved herself to be.

With the winds only getting stronger with every passing second, we ended up sprawled on the floor in some form of awkward group hug, with little attention paid to proper organisation. Sand assaulted our bodies relentlessly, the only thing in my line of sight was a wall of brown, but I knew the bottom line was to cling to the bodies beside me, knowing my life depended on it.

In spite of our last-ditch efforts, when I felt our three-body unit skidding forward again, I was overwhelmed by resignation, it seemed we had been backed into a corner and consigned to cruel ends. I braced myself for the rapid acceleration. Miraculously, it never came. My foot came into contact with the wall with barely any impact created, and the dust settled once again.

I could see where the scientist was going with his experiment, but this was, putting it lightly, quite a sick way to test for adaptation skills. The uncomplicated, but tremendously unpleasant cycle of full-blown sandstorms striking the room after a minute's interval continued for at least fifteen more minutes, after which sand had probably covered every inch of our exposed skin. That was the least of our concerns, though, as Chaeyoung had remained unresponsive throughout the ordeal.

Jisoo unnie never cried. Or at least, I had never seen her cry. She was headstrong, took it upon herself to watch over us klutzes who were exceptionally adept at landing ourselves into sticky situations and usually bottled up her feelings, choosing to handle them herself instead of troubling us. She was the unspoken leader our clique never had. It spoke volumes about how traumatic the situations she had found herself in were that she was also sniffling uncontrollably in front of me currently, as she gazed longingly at Chaeyoung, who ironically looked very much at peace.

Seeing the girl I was usually so dependent on breaking down before my very own eyes should have been an out-of-body experience. However, I cast it out of my mind immediately as adrenaline came surging thick and fast through my veins yet again. This time, it wasn't sand we had to contend with. It was water.

Jets of water gushed into the room speedily, I wasn't sure where from, but that wasn't the pressing issue. Rather, the issue was that the water level was rising at an alarming rate. Jisoo unnie and I exchanged panicked glances as our shoes ended up submerged in no time. “Lisa, you know I can't swim…” Jisoo unnie’s inability to swim was something I had always mocked her for, but this was no laughing matter.

As fine a swimmer as I was, keeping an unconscious Chaeyoung and a hapless Jisoo unnie afloat by myself was nigh impossible, surely. As the water began rising above knee level, I cast a desperate look at Jisoo unnie, but she simply remained silent. I had known Jisoo unnie long enough to tell that that meant the gears in her head were whirring, and I waited patiently for a brainwave to hit her. It didn’t come when the water was waist level. It didn’t come when the water was shoulder level. It didn’t come even when Jisoo unnie’s entire body was practically submerged. At that point, she broke out of her trance and gave me a pleading look, and I knew I was going to have to do some serious heavy lifting.

It didn’t augur well that within a minute of beginning to tread water, my leg muscles were already beginning to burn. I could tread water comfortably if all I had to support was my 40-odd kilogram frame, but 130-odd kilograms? No chance. I knew I wouldn’t be able to sustain such effort for more than a few minutes, but perhaps the intensity of the situation had ignited the usually-dormant spark in my mind, and ideas, both realistic and far-fetched, streamed into my mind, displacing the never-ending supply of nonsense usually found inside.

“Unnie...can you...spread yourself prone...facing downwards...arms and legs outstretched.” I gasped between heavy pants. “You’ll be able...to float...just come up...when you need air.” Jisoo unnie looked somewhat skeptical, but assumed the position obediently, and the effect was instantaneous. _Three’s most certainly a crowd…_ I wrapped my arms around Chaeyoung’s neck carefully, finding myself able to tread water with consummate ease once Jisoo unnie had been taken out of the equation. However, holding onto Chaeyoung’s limp body, with the prominent bruise directly in my line of sight, caused me to be overcome by a sudden wave of melancholy.

_You can’t leave us, Rosie_...I was suddenly back in high school, being pinned against the wall by a group of girls while they turned my pockets inside out, before a sequence of indignant cries rang out, and a lanky girl (her legs were almost as long as mine!) took my hand and yelled “Run!”; I was suddenly back in Rosie’s house, lying beside her on her bed as she attempted rather unsuccessfully to teach me Korean (no fault of hers, it was my attention span); I was suddenly... _wait, did her eyelid just twitch?_

**ROSÉ’S POV:**

I shut my eyes tightly as soon as they had opened about the width of a crack, the light flooding into my eyes practically blinding. To make matters worse, there was this sharp, throbbing pain shooting through my skull every other second. _I must be really out of it..._ I felt like I was floating, my body weightless. I grimaced and squirmed in discomfort as I became vaguely aware of a force clamping down on my neck. “Relax, Rosie, it’s me, you’re safe.”

_Lisa_. I forced my eyes open and ended up squinting into a pair of eyes I knew inside out. Her orange hair was messily strewn all over her face, as if she had just come out of the shower, and her face was noticeably flushed like it usually was after she had performed one of her insanely complicated dance routines. As I gradually regained my bearings, memories came flooding back into my cluttered mind. _The bridge...the coals...the sand..._ I frowned as I realised the last thing I could recall was being tossed around roughly by the whirlwinds of sand.

The sand was gone, that was for sure. Even in my semi-conscious state, I could tell I was soaking wet instead, apparently I wasn't imagining things when I thought I was floating. Either the sand was all part of a hallucination, or I had been out of it for so long we had already surpassed that stage. Following all the helter skelter of events earlier, though, I didn't know what to believe at this point.

“Rosie, you feeling alright? Does your head hurt?” Lisa asked breathlessly, and only then I noticed that the reason I seemed to be floating effortlessly was thanks to Lisa supporting my weight while treading water.

“A little, but I’ll live.” I broke free of Lisa’s embrace gently and began treading water myself. “How long have you been doing this? You look wasted.”

“About 15 minutes? I was supporting both you and Jisoo unnie at one point, you know.”

_Jisoo unnie?_ I peered behind Lisa’s shoulder and was immensely alarmed at the sight that greeted me, Jisoo unnie lying motionless, face submerged into the water and limbs carelessly strewn around her body. “Is she ok?”

Lisa sighed and shook her head sadly before asking cryptically, “Do you remember unnie ever learning how to swim?”

With every second that passed without as much as a twitch from Jisoo unnie’s body, I became increasingly worried. _She can’t be dead...can she?_ I tentatively reached out to tap her limp shoulder only to squeal as her head broke the surface of the water without any prior movement, spraying water into my eyes as she gasped for air. Her eyes widened as they met mine. “Chaeyoung-ah, you…” She couldn’t finish her sentence, thrashing around wildly as she began slowly but surely sinking.

“You didn’t help her!” I yelled at Lisa indignantly as I hoisted a coughing and spluttering Jisoo unnie to the surface.

“You were more of a hassle than a help, Rosie, I had things under control.” Lisa smirked in satisfaction.

“Oh yeah? She was close to drowning!”

“That’s only because she saw you and had a panic attack of some sort. Don’t you remember our water safety courses? The most basic method of floating?”

Realisation dawned upon me in a flash. _I remember._ And the name ‘dead-man’s float’ seemed incredibly appropriate given the circumstances we were in.

  
**LISA’S POV:**

Thank goodness Chaeyoung had come to. Our heads were brushing against the ceiling at this point, such was the sheer amount of water that had been pumped into the room, and I knew that if Chaeyoung hadn’t regained consciousness in a timely fashion, she would have been dead as soon as she started inhaling water.

It was still up in the air whether the scientist was out to decimate us completely or prolong our suffering, but the rise of the water level showed no signs of slowing down. The three of us, Chaeyoung and I supporting Jisoo unnie, had fallen into a reflective silence, Chaeyoung rubbing the bruise on her head idly while gazing into the distance. I couldn’t help wondering if she had come to only to suffer a terrifying, painful death minutes later. Drowning had always been one of my biggest fears, I had read that the slow nature of such deaths made them the most excruciating. _And now I’ll know firsthand..._

Our heads were now completely pressed against the ceiling, the water swiftly surging past our chin level. The mix of emotions I was experiencing was leaving me numb, but the thought that the next couple of minutes could be the last I would ever spend with my best friends was chilling. “Rosie, Jisoo unnie, whatever happens from here on, just know that I really really love you girls, you’re my soulmates for life.”

They looked like they wanted to respond desperately, but that was exactly when the last of the air pockets disappeared and we went under. After instantly joining hands and forming a circle, staring deeply into each other’s eyes, I realised how natural it was for us to be together. It was a bittersweet moment, the poignancy of our tragic shared fates, yet our childhood promise to be together forever in life and death had proved beautifully indestructible.

_Jennie unnie._ My thoughts drifted to her just as about half of the remaining air in my lungs had been expired. _She’ll be so worried for us. She’ll have to suffer through torture alone. I won’t be there by her side to help her pull through._ Memories flooded into my mind and I recalled the stammering mess that I became upon plucking up enough courage to confess to unnie, I recalled our regular getaways to Thailand and unnie making a fuss over the mouth-watering food, and I was hit with a sharp pang of loss.

My lungs were burning, probably more so than the others, it wasn’t exactly a secret that I had by far the lowest lung capacity out of us four, which had to go quite some way to explaining my singing deficiencies. I had to fight the natural instinct to inhale, which was an agonising task on its own, and I wondered if there was any point in delaying the inevitable. _I definitely took air for granted in the past..._ my lungs were craving for air badly, and I knew it was only a matter of seconds before body took over mind, my breathing mechanism would be triggered, and water would come barreling into my lungs.

I shut my eyes, wanting to make my impending death as peaceful as possible, and squeezed my friends’ hands weakly, for the final time. A few more seconds passed, and I knew that any second now, my time would be up. All of a sudden, I was yanked upwards roughly by both arms, my head slammed against the ceiling hard, and I inhaled reflexively. _It’s over._ I braced myself for the water to come crashing thick and fast into my lungs. It never came. _Wait...I’m inhaling air?_ Opening my eyes, I realised the water level had decreased considerably, about the level of my lips now. Chaeyoung and Jisoo unnie stared at me worriedly as I gasped for precious, amazing, miraculous air.

“What were you doing, Lisa? You signalled for us to surface, yet you stayed below.”

“I signalled you?”

“You squeezed our hands, didn’t you? I was on the verge of giving up, but then I realised you were trying to tell us that the water level had dipped.”

It took a while for what Chaeyoung had said to sink in. Then, I began chuckling. My friends were looking at me as if I had gone mad as I started giggling hysterically, but then again maybe I had indeed gone mad. My parting gesture saved all our lives...I mused, it was nothing short of miraculous.

**JISOO’S POV:**

It felt surreal that I was still alive. It was as if all the fear and anxiety I would experience across my entire lifetime had been compressed to fit into a span of a few hours, and I was so drained I simply felt empty. However exhausted I was, though, I believed. Each square had provided each of us with a chance to take the lead role in overcoming his monstrous creations, almost as if we were fated to clear any hurdles that lay in our path.

As the water level continued decreasing steadily, I initiated a group hug, which was reciprocated all too gladly by my friends, and I felt emotional yet again. This series of events was bound to leave massive scars on me, I was the type to suppress my feelings as long as I could, but each and every challenge I faced with the girls I loved to bits seemed to tug hard at my heartstrings.

It was another long spell of silence as we tried to gather our thoughts and regain composure, it was another long walk through the increasingly bothersome caves, and we were eventually presented with another big decision to make. It was uncomplicated, with two doors standing before us. One read ‘Leave’. The other read ‘Stay’.

Yang Hyunsuk had probably intended for us to be badly torn between both options. It warmed my heart, however, as the three of us automatically gravitated towards the door on our right without a moment's hesitation. I looked into their eyes for confirmation, and they nodded resolutely. I smiled despite myself. We were to stay, and we were to fight, as if it was our last chance of ever doing so again.

 

 

 


End file.
